Hygge recipes: Monkey bread, mulled wine & hot chocolate

You will need a pan that vaguely resembles a bundt tin (have a google – anything with a hole in the middle should do) although this is not a neat cake, so any medium sized, deep cake tin should do the trick!

Dough

– 200ml milk

– 85g unsalted butter

– 2 eggs

– 550g strong white bread flour

– 1 sachet of dried yeast

– 50g caster sugar

Filling

– 125g unsalted butter

– 2 tbsp ground cinnon

– 2 tsp nutmeg

– 225g dark muscovado sugar

Heat the milk and butter in a small pan until the butter has melted.

Allow to cool, then add the eggs to the mix and beat.

Mix together the dry ingredients for the dough and then stir in the egg/butter/milk mixture. Bring together as a sticky dough. Leave to rest for a few minutes, then knead on a floured work top for 5-10 minutes (like you see on the Bake Off) until it’s lovely and soft.

Pop the dough in a lightly oiled bowl to prove for an hour (it should just about double in size) – this is a good time to squeeze in a bit of uni work!

While you’re waiting, combine the cinnamon, nutmeg and muscovado sugar. Towards the end of your hour melt the rest of the butter in a small pan.

Pour a tablespoon of the butter into the pan. Pull the dough into 50-60 small balls. Dunk each in butter and then in the spiced sugar, then stuff into the tin

This should almost fill your tin – leave it to rise somewhere warm for another hour. Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan and bake for around 20-30 minutes. A bit like brownies – this is good if still slightly undercooked!

Leave to cool in the pan for a little bit, then tip out and dig in!

Mulled Wine

It ain’t no glogg, but it will have to do! This warming winter tipple is a sure-fire way to get in the festive spirit. Perfect on a cold night, why not add a little hygge to your pre-drinks this winter!

Ingredients:

– Bottle of red wine

– 75g caster sugar (to taste)

– 1 cinnamon stick

– 1 or 2 bayleaves

– A dash of ground nutmeg

– 1 orange, sliced

Bung all of the ingredients in a in a saucepan. Stir whilst bringing to the boil to stop the sugar from burning. Boil for 5 minutes until all the sugar has dissolved and the flavours have infused.

Warm the milk in a small pan, then add the chocolate and allow it to melt while on a gentle heat. Keep stirring until the chocolate has melted, while adding the rest of the ingredients as you go. Top with marshmallows and you’re set!